4 ms·

I can understand that the media companies don't want to cooperate with Netflix by denying them access to their IP but it's sad that they haven't been able to la

I can understand that the media companies don't want to cooperate with Netflix by denying them access to their IP but it's sad that they haven't been able to launch a real alternative to Netflix during all these years.

denzil_correa 10y ago
Everyone is now launching their own streaming service. Basically, the cable TV phenomena for entertainment has now moved on to the Internet.
CapitalistCartr 10y ago
Sure they have. Torrents are popular and effective. They work great. The studios clearly prefer we use them; their repeated decisions leaving them as the sole functional choice show that.
- kbart 10y ago
  Exactly. And as a bonus point, they can force governments to draconian DRM laws citing "billions of revenue lost to piracy".
- pforpineapple 10y ago
  "The studios clearly prefer we use them" : what do you mean ?
  - pbhjpbhj 10y ago
    I think it's safe to say he, sarcastically, is implying that failure to match the ease of getting torrents of movies means that movie studios are by default leaving torrenting as the best way to watch. Thus they seemingly endorse torrenting by offering no proper competition.
zaroth 10y ago
When they think it makes business sense they will do it. It's certainly not a technical limitation. Likewise, I doubt we'll be seeing Netflix's OC showing up on regular cable or broadcast networks anytime soon. Not that they couldn't get some licensing revenue from it, but it's just not their chosen model.
romanovcode 10y ago
Nobody wants to share the pie.
jpalomaki 10y ago
Maybe the big ones just can't come up with a way to compete with Netflix without destroying their old business. Customers want content with reasonable monthly fee, but that does not mix up well with dvd/blu-ray sales, rental business etc. Supporting Netflix is of course also something they don't like, since the more monthly paying customer Netflix attracts, the more viable competitor it becomes. This leads me to wonder that could it be that studios did not originally even consider Netflix as their competitor?
jrnichols 10y ago
They're hoping that you'll buy the physical media. That's been the plan with Redbox - force a 28-90 day delay on new releases so customers will rush right out and just buy it on DVD. reality is that people usually just wait. The studios don't really want to cooperate. They want complete control over how you watch their product.
- pbhjpbhj 10y ago
  Agreed. In the UK we no longer have rights to format shift (we did, but they were rescinded), so if you bought it on DVD and want to watch on your tablet - well you'll probably have to buy it again or infringe the letter of the copyright law. What's that? Want to stream it to another device from your computer, ha-ha, no chance. If media companies made such things legal (they control the copyright laws) then there's no telling what might happen. People watching the media they paid for, how absurd! They want to sell you a cinema viewing, sell you a DVD, sell you a tablet download, and even then sell you a streaming copy to watch on your TV (because who has a DVD player now).

denzil_correa 10y ago

Everyone is now launching their own streaming service. Basically, the cable TV phenomena for entertainment has now moved on to the Internet.

CapitalistCartr 10y ago

Sure they have. Torrents are popular and effective. They work great. The studios clearly prefer we use them; their repeated decisions leaving them as the sole functional choice show that.

kbart 10y ago
Exactly. And as a bonus point, they can force governments to draconian DRM laws citing "billions of revenue lost to piracy".
pforpineapple 10y ago
"The studios clearly prefer we use them" : what do you mean ?
- pbhjpbhj 10y ago
  I think it's safe to say he, sarcastically, is implying that failure to match the ease of getting torrents of movies means that movie studios are by default leaving torrenting as the best way to watch. Thus they seemingly endorse torrenting by offering no proper competition.

zaroth 10y ago

When they think it makes business sense they will do it. It's certainly not a technical limitation. Likewise, I doubt we'll be seeing Netflix's OC showing up on regular cable or broadcast networks anytime soon. Not that they couldn't get some licensing revenue from it, but it's just not their chosen model.

romanovcode 10y ago

Nobody wants to share the pie.

jpalomaki 10y ago

Maybe the big ones just can't come up with a way to compete with Netflix without destroying their old business. Customers want content with reasonable monthly fee, but that does not mix up well with dvd/blu-ray sales, rental business etc. Supporting Netflix is of course also something they don't like, since the more monthly paying customer Netflix attracts, the more viable competitor it becomes. This leads me to wonder that could it be that studios did not originally even consider Netflix as their competitor?

jrnichols 10y ago

They're hoping that you'll buy the physical media. That's been the plan with Redbox - force a 28-90 day delay on new releases so customers will rush right out and just buy it on DVD. reality is that people usually just wait. The studios don't really want to cooperate. They want complete control over how you watch their product.

pbhjpbhj 10y ago
Agreed. In the UK we no longer have rights to format shift (we did, but they were rescinded), so if you bought it on DVD and want to watch on your tablet - well you'll probably have to buy it again or infringe the letter of the copyright law. What's that? Want to stream it to another device from your computer, ha-ha, no chance. If media companies made such things legal (they control the copyright laws) then there's no telling what might happen. People watching the media they paid for, how absurd! They want to sell you a cinema viewing, sell you a DVD, sell you a tablet download, and even then sell you a streaming copy to watch on your TV (because who has a DVD player now).